Here’s What Guests Should Know Before Choosing an Outfit for a Wedding

Are you attending a wedding in the near future? If so, you want to be sure you’re dressed appropriately for the event. That means understanding certain fashion rules, like knowing when to wear a pair of women’s boots and when to wear high heels. Although the specific dress code of a wedding will vary on a case-by-case basis, the following tips will help you make the right impression on everyone in attendance.

Avoid White

The bride is going to be wearing white, so anyone showing up in the same color will simply look as though they are trying to upstage her. Don’t make this mistake! There’s a reason it’s one of the most well-known wedding etiquette rules. It’s also a good idea to avoid wearing anything so extravagant that it draws excessive attention away from the bride. You can look great without looking like you’re trying to make the day about you.

…And Black

Black attire is also relatively frowned upon at weddings. Although there are some instances in which a festive design can make a black dress work, too often, this type of clothing reminds people of funeral attire.

Keep It Classy

Wedding attire shouldn’t be too revealing either. After all, there are likely going to be children in attendance. Something that shows a little too much skin may not be appropriate for the occasion.

Bring Flats

Wearing heels to a wedding is fairly common for women. However, it’s also a good idea to bring along a stylish pair of flats. Spending a lot of time on your feet in heels can get pretty uncomfortable if the wedding runs long.

Accessorize

Weddings can be expensive, not just for the ones throwing them, but also for those attending them. It may not be financially practical to buy a completely new outfit for every wedding you’re invited to. However, with a collection of unique accessories, you can make one of your current outfits look new enough to work for several weddings.

Embrace Color When Appropriate

Summer weddings are often ideal for colorful outfits. If you’re attending one this time of year, go ahead and have a little fun with your choices, as long as the dress code doesn’t request otherwise.

Make an Effort

Most importantly, make sure you’re treating the event with the dignity it deserves. A wedding is one of the most important days in someone’s life. Showing up in excessively casual attire definitely sends the wrong message to your loved ones.

Again, dressing right is part of being a courteous wedding guest. It also doesn’t need to be difficult. Follow these points, and you’ll easily and affordably dress well.

About The Author:

Rae is a graduate of Tufts University with a combined International Relations and Chinese degree. After spending time living and working abroad in China, she returned to NYC to pursue her career and continue curating quality content. Rae is passionate about travel, food, and writing (of course).

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One of the more important decisions a bride will make when planning her wedding is choosing her maid of honor. The maid of honor plays a key role in the planning process and on the wedding day. It is an honor to be asked, but before saying yes, it is a good idea to understand the maid of honor’s responsibilities and the part she plays in the wedding, including delivering the maid of honor wedding toast.

Maid of Honor Responsibilities

For many, being asked to serve as the maid of honor is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to help a friend or family member prepare for the biggest day of her life. Depending on the bride’s temperament and organizational skills, she may rely on her maid of honor to help with many aspects of the preparations, including choosing the color scheme, decorations, bridesmaid dresses, or even the venue for the reception. During the planning process, the maid of honor is often asked to assist the bride with the fittings for her gown and arrange the fittings for the other bridesmaids. In addition, the bride may need the emotional support of her maid of honor or simply need someone else’s opinion before she makes decisions. The maid of honor will be as involved in planning the details as the bride wants her to be. However, she does have some responsibilities of her own.

The maid of honor is responsible for organizing and hosting both the bridal shower and bachelorette party. She may enlist help from the other bridal party members or the family members of the bride and groom, but she is the person who takes care of these pre-wedding events by organizing the details and paying the expenses. However, she can ask the other bridesmaids or family members to share the costs.

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There’s one thing that every couple getting married needs: an officiant. There simply has to be another person to legally bring them together as one. And yes, for some couples, an Elvis impersonator in Vegas will do—but for 95% of couples, they want an officiant who means something to them, whether it’s because of religious beliefs, admiration, or because it’s someone close to them.

Those chosen can be religious, such as priests, pastors or rabbis; civil officiants such as judges, magistrates, court clerks, notaries public, or justices of the peace; professional officiants, or even a friend or family member that is ordained.

So what are the qualities couples should seek in an officiant, and where should they look? According to the wedding professionals at Blush Banquet Hall in Los Angeles, these are the differences between officiants, and here is how couples can select the right one for their specific union.

Know Where to Look

Once you and your future spouse have agreed on what kind of officiant you want (religious, civil, professional, or a friend), it’s time to find the right person. “If you don’t already have a certain person in mind, a good idea is to ask married friends for referrals,” says Avo Petrossian, owner of Blush. If this doesn’t work, there are many online officiant directories to choose from. (Be sure to read reviews on them, too.) If you’re having a friend officiate, be sure to ask someone who knows you both very well, fully supports your union, and is comfortable speaking in front of others.

Meet Them First

“For religious officiants, it’s usually easy to find the right person,” says Petrossian. “The couple either already has someone in mind from their spiritual community, or they choose their childhood pastor or priest.” However, if you’re selecting an officiant that you’ve never met before, be sure to set up a time to meet them before your wedding. Chemistry is important, and you would never forgive yourself if the person who married you gave you an “off” or annoying vibe in person.

Know What They’ll be Saying

No matter what type of officiant you select, it’s always a good idea to ask them whatever questions you have—especially what they will be saying during the wedding ceremony. For example, if you aren’t religious, you’ll want to make sure they don’t mention anything spiritual. And if you don’t want them to toss in jokes or silly comments, that should be discussed. By asking up front, you’ll be able to ensure nothing is said during the ceremony that you’ll regret.

Have a Backup

“One thing that we always tell our couples is to have a backup officiant if they want someone personal to them,” says Petrossian. “If your chosen officiant gets sick or cancels shortly before the wedding, you’ll want to have someone else equally meaningful in mind to take their place.”

Hopefully, this helps you on your journey to choosing the right officiant for your wedding! It’s one thing if you just want someone to make it official, but it’s another if you want someone who means something to you. If that’s the route you want to take, just be sure it’s someone that you both like and are comfortable with, and go over what they will be saying on your big day. Good luck!

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Intro Wedding Toasts 101

When your friend bestows the honor of the wedding toast upon you, it should spark feelings of respect and accomplishment. However, most people feel a deep sense of dread at the notion of getting up in front of a large gathering during a lifetime event and giving the couple their send-off. Public speaking is a common fear, and when you add the fact that this is the event that ties two lives together, it’s only natural to be a little scared.

A million fears and questions can play out through your mind. Will you forget your speech halfway through? Will your palms start sweating? Will you shake so badly that your words come out in staggered bursts? Will you mumble? How much eye contact is enough? How should you move around? How do you gesture? Should you speak quickly or slowly? Are jokes okay? How sentimental is too sentimental? How long should this speech even be?

But fear not; the perfect wedding toast is just a few tips away. Before getting into that, what does a wedding toast entail? A wedding toast is given generally before the meal to commemorate the marriage, offer some personal backstory and wish the couple well. That means that your speech should cover these three points. It’ll be less intimidating to think of the speech in increments rather than worrying about the whole package.

Start off by thinking of what you want to talk about. Don’t worry about the actual performance yet. Think about what stories you would like to share. This research period will probably take you a few days. If you rush this part, you’re going to have a weak speech to deliver come wedding day. Instead, give yourself a little time to remember how you all met, anything in their relationship that stands out, any words of wisdom you can impart and your overall sentiment towards the couple. Above all, your words must be genuine. If you fall into trite verse or make the speech impersonal, you’re going to leave your friends with a sour taste. Always keep in mind that this is an event that often comes once a lifetime, and you don’t want to butcher it by not making the right time investment in your speech.Continue reading “The Perfect Wedding Toast: A Beginner’s Guide”→

Your wedding day is meant to be one of the happiest days of your life. It’s portrayed as a fairytale-like dream come true, celebrating the love you and your partner share with your closest friends and family. But beyond all the happiness and joy of the day is a great deal of stress and fear. The pressure of knowing you are the center of attention and everyone is there to witness you tie the knot can be terrifying and cause a bride to become scared on what’s supposed to be a joyous occasion. There are several common fears that many brides experience but don’t worry – take a deep breath and everything will be okay.

You Won’t Look Perfect

As you walk down the aisle, every single person will be looking at you. You’ve spent ages carefully selecting the perfect dress, shoes, hairstyle and makeup look for your big day. Not looking absolutely perfect on your wedding day is without a doubt one of the most common bridal fears. What if your dress and shoes don’t fit how they’re supposed to? Or what if you’re having a bad hair day and your hairstylist can’t achieve the look you had your heart set on? Or – worst of all – what if you wake up with a huge zit on your face? These are all huge concerns for every bride-to-be and, thankfully, the likelihood of any of these things happening is very low. Prepare for your wedding by trying on your dress and shoes beforehand and holding a hair and makeup trial run. By not waiting until the day of to do these things you will be able to alleviate some of the worries you’ll have of not looking perfect on your big day. And if you do happen to wake up with a pimple or dark eye circles, your makeup artist should be able to cover it up expertly.

People Won’t Show Up

Another extremely common fear for brides is that people (both guests and vendors) aren’t going to show up. If guests RSVPed yes and didn’t show up, you would feel sad and embarrassed that people didn’t feel the need to attend your wedding. If your vendors didn’t show up, it would ruin the entire day. Although it’s possible that some of your guests may not show up, remember that the people who you chose to invite to your wedding are people who love you and would want nothing more than to be able to celebrate with you. To help give your guests a gentle reminder that your nuptials are coming up, send out an email or letter outlining the details of the big day, such as directions to the venue, a schedule of events and accommodations for the out of town guests. To prevent your vendors from flaking on you, make sure you call them before the wedding to reconfirm all details and to also provide them with additional information such as itineraries and schedules, venue location and parking information.Continue reading “Quiet A Bride’s Greatest Wedding Day Fears”→